MOSCOW (AP) — The Kremlin is reaffirming its denial of meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election ahead of a summit between Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump.

Putin's foreign affairs adviser, Yuri Ushakov, said Friday that "the Russian state has never interfered and has no intention of interfering in the U.S. elections."

Ushakov spoke hours before the U.S. Justice Department announced charges against 12 Russian military intelligence officers for alleged hacking offenses during the 2016 election.

He said the Kremlin thinks "the current tensions have no objective reasons," adding that Moscow and Washington must join efforts to tackle challenges such as international terrorism.

Ushakov says Syria and the Iranian presence there will feature high on the agenda of the summit in Helsinki on Monday.